By Derrick Muganza
Africa-Press – Uganda. On the morning of October 7, 2024, while appearing on Morning Breeze, a talk show aired on NBS Television, Parliamentary Commissioner and Nyendo-Mukungwe MP Hon. Mathias Mpuuga Nsamba championed his newly introduced constitutional amendment bill.
Seconded by Bugabula South MP Henry Maurice Kibalya, the bill was touted as a comprehensive reform package that would, among other things, grant Ugandans living abroad the right to vote in general elections—a fundamental civic right they have been denied since the country’s independence.
However, what initially seemed like a progressive move toward inclusive democracy quickly unraveled into disappointment. When Mpuuga shared the final 44-page draft of the bill on his X (formerly Twitter) account on Wednesday, October 16 at 10:30am, not a single clause addressed diaspora voting. The silence was both glaring and disheartening.
This omission is not a trivial oversight. Ugandans in the diaspora—estimated at over two million—are spread across six continents. Many live and work under difficult conditions: enduring the scorching summers of the Middle East and braving the biting winters of Europe and North America. Yet, despite the distance and hardship, they continue to contribute significantly to Uganda’s economy.
In 2023 alone, diaspora remittances amounted to a staggering $1.14 billion (about Shs4 trillion), contributing about 2% of Uganda’s Gross Domestic Product. These are not idle figures—they reflect real sacrifices and sustained commitment to the welfare of families and communities back home. Surely, the right to participate in the democratic process of a country they so deeply support should not be a matter of debate but one of justice and basic fairness.
And yet, justice continues to be delayed.
With the 2026 general elections looming, most sitting MPs are fully engaged in constituency campaigns, focused on defending their seats. As a result, Mpuuga’s bill has quietly slipped into political limbo, shelved without serious debate. In all likelihood, it will never make it to the order paper—yet another victim of pre-election paralysis and legislative self-interest.
Come January through May, Parliament will enter a lame-duck session. In that period, with MPs uncertain of their futures and little political capital left to spend, few are likely to push for reforms that do not directly benefit their re-election bids. Unfortunately, voting rights for Ugandans abroad will once again be pushed to the periphery—relegated to footnotes in committee reports and dusty shelves of unrealised legislative ambitions.
It does not have to be this way.
Ugandans abroad are not asking for privilege—they are asking for representation. Their contributions are tangible, their voices valid. If the nation is willing to accept their remittances, it must also be willing to accept their votes. To continue to deny them this basic right is to undermine the very principles of democracy the country claims to uphold.
The time has come to move this issue from the margins to the centre of public discourse. Civil society, political leaders, and citizens alike must pressure Parliament to revive the conversation and legislate meaningful change. A country cannot boast of being a democracy while denying millions of its citizens a voice in its future.
The right to vote should not be a matter of geography—it should be a matter of citizenship. For Ugandans abroad, the ballot box is not just a symbol of inclusion; it is long overdue recognition of their place in the nation they continue to serve from afar.
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